Morrissey Blvd.

SluiceVLH

Turbines

UrbanFurniture

BikePaths

Vehicular Bridge

TraditionalWater Wheels

New Multi-Use

Parking(Below)

NewMulti-Use

Bu�erSpecies

Plantings

Flood Gates / Sluice

Morrissey Channel

Morrissey Channel for 100yr Flood

Raised Pedestrian

Park

Urban Catch Basin

EdibleSalt Marsh

Plants

CommunityGarden

BedsCord Grass

Suaeda Maritima

(25 Million Gallons)

30’15’

THE HYDROKINETIC CANAL

INSPIRATION

This proposal for transforming Morrissey Boulevard and Harbor Point over the next 100 years draws inspiration from the topographic and land-use patterns of 1600s Boston. At that time, Mill Creek linked Mill Pond, to the north, with Boston Harbor, to the south (see historic map). By controlling the changing water levels in Mill Pond’s tidal basin, Mill Creek powered its adjacent mills with its rush of water between the pond and the harbor, thereby sustaining industries in Boston’s bustling port city.

APPLICATION / CONCEPT

Today Boston’s circumstances and scale are different, but its same core land-use principles can be applied to the Morrissey Boulevard District, while adding opportunity to Columbia Point’s evolving urban fabric. We propose a new system of waterways to increase Columbia Point’s resilience to climate change, generate sustainable energy, and provide an expanded, improved public realm. A new Hydrokinetic Canal is this urban plan’s centerpiece.

A NEW CANAL: MORRISSEY CANAL – THE NEW URBAN ARMATURE

We propose a new water system of canals, basins, harbors and breakaways to cut through Columbia Point, linking Old Harbor (to the north) to Savin Hill Cove and the mouth of the Neponset River (to the south). The system is organized along a new canal (Morrissey Canal) with regularly positioned sluices to let water flow freely between these two bodies of water. Turbines are strategically located to capture the flow of water as an energy-generating force as water levels change throughout the day, as well as when major storms enter Boston Harbor. Located 15 feet below a realigned Morrissey Boulevard, the new canal basin features walkways, paths, bridges, and other public amenities, creating a rich environment for recreation. Within the basin, a deeper canal cut channels water during all seasons.

URBAN CATCH BASINS – MIXING COMMUNITY FARMING AND NATIVE SPECIES

As storm levels rise more frequently, the lower canal level cannot contain water exclusively. So its three large ba-sins provide additional water containment capacity of more than 25 million gallons each. Gates and sluices along the canal and between the basins regulate water levels between each basin until optimum equilibrium is found. After floods, water is pumped up to higher levels using energy stored from the hydrokinetic turbines. These ba-sins otherwise support urban agriculture, native cordgrass, and local edible saltmarsh plants: glasswort, sea blite, beach plum, wild rice, etc. Community gardens occupy the higher levels of the basin’s terraced topography, while native species dominate lower levels (up to 30 feet deep).

MORRISSEY BOULEVARD REVISITED - DIVIDE AND CONQUER

Morrissey Boulevard has only two roads feeding Columbia Point. So we propose a network of streets, like the Back Bay or South End, to allow cars multiple Columbia Point access routes. This would shave two lanes off Mor-rissey and straighten its path from the Roundabout to Pattens Cove. Morrissey’s profile could now accommodate bike and pedestrian lanes and tree-lined greensward borders.

THE NEW HARBOR – LINKED TO THE OLDE HARBOR

To help funnel water into the new canal, while creating a new waterfront amenity linked to Carson Beach, a “New Harbor” is carved out of the Bayside Expo Center site, creating valuable new frontage for housing and other uses, and potentially an Olympic Village. “Floating Architecture” can be tethered to the new harbor’s marina-like fingers. Non-floating buildings are raised high above its boardwalk.

MODERN DAY MILLS – HYRDROKINETIC TURBINES CAPTURING ENERGY

New advances in capturing energy from hydro sources create a diversity of turbines suitable for this site: in-stream hyrdrokinetic power (of many types), tidal turbines, VLH turbines, Wave Energy Converters, old-fashioned water wheels, etc. Whether anchored to the canal basin’s walls or the pylons supporting new bridges, many loca-tions can accommodate a mix of technologies suitable to the site’s fluid dynamics. These technologies will be celebrated as part of new public spaces whenever possible.

NOT A “BRIDGE TOO FAR” – CONNECTING UMASS TO DORCHESTER

We propose several new bridges connecting UMass-Boston to Dorchester, making the campus less remote from the mainland. These bridges support groynes, too: capped with breakwaters, the groynes extend perpendicular to shore, slowing the water, allowing Neponset River sediment to collect between them instead of in the canal. Over time, saltmarshes will form naturally around the groynes. Where the water flows more forcefully, turbines are anchored to the bridge supports for more hydropower generation. The bridges eventually become an armature for more floating architecture tethered to them like townhouses strung along Back Bay’s Commonwealth Avenue. This is how a new, more resilient urban fabric can evolve organically over time.

RELOCATING MAJOR LAND USES / OWNERS – SWAPPING LAND – SWAPPING WATER

In 1950, Boston College High School moved from the South End to Columbia Point. It could thus relocate onto a newly configured Columbia Point within the next 100 years, considering how many parcels of land are in play. The recently purchased Boston Globe is rumored to be selling its property, which would provide significant housing, commercial or institutional development opportunities. Similarly, the Bayside Expo Center has undergone many facelifts and ownership changes. This proposal assumes that, over the next 100 years, the occupants of buildings along Morrissey Boulevard could be relocated into new, improved resilient structures through creative land/water swaps. The geometry and dimensions of proposed buildings and infrastructure is preconfigured to accommodate different phasing scenarios.

HIGHLIGHTING LOST HIDDEN GEMS – COLUMBIA POINT ICONS / NEW AND OLD

Despite its erratic layout, Columbia Point contains architectural icons that could be highlighted in this evolving urban plan by realigning access roads and view corridors and carving new streets. The Calf Pasture Pumping Station, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, and the Massachusetts State Archives could be-come visual anchors when viewed from newly defined roadways. An opportunity to integrate new landmarks into Columbia Point’s network of public spaces and uses also exists.

SUMMARY

This proposal fulfills a new need for more resilient Boston neighborhoods by combining colonial-era urban design patterns and precedents with new hydrokinetic technologies. This mix creates new forms of urban habitation, where water actively generates sustainable energy, urban life and urban form for generations to come.

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Morrissey Blvd Morrissey Canal Urban Catch Basins

Urban Fabric Armature Open Space Network